Combination lock and fail-safe latch for exit doors

ABSTRACT

Combination lock and fail-safe latch for exit doors in which a locking bolt of a lock mechanism on a door frame is spring urged to an unlocked position with respect to a closed door, and is operable to a locked position by electrically energized actuator means, the locking bolt being movable from a locked position to an unlocked position by means of a bolt ejector of a locking mechanism on the door, the bolt ejector comprising a component of a door lock assembly or an attachment thereto, and being supported for movements to a retracted position and an advanced position, means normally urging the bolt ejector to the retracted position and manual actuator means being operable from the inside of the door to move the bolt ejector to an advanced position for ejecting and moving the locking bolt from locked position to unlocked position. A fail-safe feature is accomplished by providing the locking bolt and bolt ejector respectively with magnet members arranged with their adjacent pole ends in a repulsion mode to produce a magnetic force for moving the locking bolt to unlocked position upon deenergization of the electric actuator means in the event of failure of the spring urging means.

United States Patent n91 Geringer 1 Mar. 25, 1975 1 1 COMBINATION LOCKAND FAIL-SAFE LATCH FOR EXIT DOORS [76] Inventor: Arthur V. Geringer,5424 Geyser Ave., Tarzana, Calif. 91356 [22] Filed: Oct. 15, 1973 [21]Appl. No.: 406,570

[52] US. Cl 70/145, 70/281, 70/432,

292/33, 292/34, 292/37, 292/254 {51] Int. Cl... E05b 63/14, E05b 59/00,E05b 47/02 {58] Field of Search 70/101, 141, 145; 292/144,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,044,099 1 H1912 SpringZOO/61.67 2,219,186 10/1940 Hornfeck 292/144 2,304,941 12/1942 Mantz292/254 3,166,144 1/1965 Price 180/82 3,596,021 7/1971 Saul 200/61933,751,086 8/1973 Geringer 292/144 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 23.3471913 United Kingdom 292/144 Prt'nmry E.\'aminerA1bert G. Craig, Jr.Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Whann & McManigal [57] ABSTRACT Combinationlock and fail-safe latch for exit doors in which a locking bolt of alock mechanism on a door frame is spring urged to an unlocked positionwith respect to a closed door, and is operable to a locked position byelectrically energized actuator means, the locking bolt being movablefrom a locked position to an unlocked position by means of a boltejector of a locking mechanism on the door, the bolt ejector comprisinga component of a door lock assembly or an attachment thereto, and beingsupported for movements to a retracted position and an advancedposition, means normally urging the bolt ejector to the retractedposition and manual actuator means being operable from the inside of thedoor to move the bolt ejector to an advanced position for ejecting andmoving the locking bolt from locked position to unlocked position. Afail-safe feature is accomplished by providing the locking bolt and boltejector respectively with magnet members arranged with their adjacentpole ends in a repulsion modeto produce a magnetic force for moving thelocking bolt to unlocked position upon deenergization of the electricactuator means in the event of failure of the spring urging means.

17 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures COMBINATION LOCK AND FAIL-SAFE LATCH FOREXIT DOORS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relatesgenerally to the field of 5 door locks.

The present uniform building code calls for a means of electricallyunlocking all the stairway exit doors in the case of buildings having aheight above a perscribed number of stories.

One proposed approach to the problem of meeting the code provisions isto utilize a lock assembly on the door which incorporates a bolt thatcan be operated to an unlocked position by means of a small solenoid.Such approach, however, poses a number of problems:

a. It is difficult to provide a dependable supply of electric currentfrom the stationary door frame to the lock of the movable door. A powertransfer hinge has been developed for this purpose, but this does noteliminate all the difficulties, and still leaves the problem ofconducting the electric current from the hinge along or through the doorto the lock mechanism. I

b. Two types of solenoids are presently used, one of these beingarranged for momentary duty and the other for continuous duty. Bothtypes of solenoids must have a continuously available power supply, andrequire expensive inspection and maintenance routines to assuredependability. The continuous duty solenoid is mounted in the lock andis arranged to keep the outside knob in locked position, the inside knobbeing free. The continuous duty solenoid also presents a hazard due tothe relatively greater power required. Because of this larger powerrequirement, heat is generated and conducted to the outside knob as wellas the inside knob of the lock. A problem is thus presented in thatpeople are reluctant to grasp the heated knob and open the door. Thiscondition thus presents a psychological hazard which is in opposition tothe primary concept of the safety concept provided by the exit door.

In order to overcome the above enumerated problems, the presentinvention provides in effect two lock mechanisms. One of these lockmechanisms is mounted on the stationary door frame, and embodies alocking bolt that is spring urged to an unlocked position, and which maybe electrically actuated to a locked position. The other lock mechanismembodies a bolt ejector which is manually operable from inside the doorto eject and move the locking bolt from a locked to unlocked position.The electrically actuated lock being on the door frame is easilysupplied with electric current and therefore requires relatively lowmaintenance. Moreover, any heat that is generated in the electricallyactuated lock will not be conducted to the manual actuated means of thelock mechanism on the door.

As a further feature, a fail-safe arrangement is provided which operatesaccording to the basic principles disclosed in my U.S. Pat. No.3,751,086, dated Aug. 7, 1973. In the present invention, bar magnets areprovided in the locking bolt and bolt ejector, these magnets havingtheir adjacent ends in a repulsion mode, and being operative to set up amagnetic force which will move the locking bolt to an unlocked position,when its actuating solenoid is deenergized, and even though theassociated spring for accomplishing such purpose has been damaged orrendered ineffectual.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally toimproved locking mechanisms for exit doors, and which embodies afail-safe operating feature.

Having in mind the inherent disadvantages and problems encountered withthe conventionally available locking mechanisms for exit doors, thepresent invention has for one object the provision of an improvedfail-safe locking mechanism of the electrically manually operable typefor emergency exit doors, which is more dependable, and yet iseconomical as to the main tenance and inspection requirements tomaintain its dependability.

A further object is to provide a locking mechanism which can be mountedon a door frame, and which embodies an electrically actuated lockingbolt that will remain locked so long as it is energized, but will beunlocked automatically when deenergized.

A further object is to provide a locking mechanism according to theforegoing-object in which another associated locking mechanism ismounted on the door and provided with a bolt ejector which can bemanually actuated from inside the door to eject the locking bolt of thelocking mechanism on the door frame to permit opening of the door.

Another object-is to provide improved locking means for emergency exitdoors, in which an electrically actuated lockingbolt on the door frameand a manually operable bolt ejector on the door are provided withfailsafc means in which magnets in the locking bolt and bolt ejectorgenerate a magnetic force which will function to move the locking boltto an unlocked position, when the locking bolt is electricallydeenergized.

Still another object is to provide improved locking means for exit doorsin which an electrically actuated locking bolt mounted on the door framecan be moved to an unlocked position by means of a manually actuatedbolt ejector which may be embodied in a plurality of different lockorganizations such as a mortise lock, cylindrical lock, unit lock, panicbar actuator, and the like, or may be provided as an attachment to anexisting lock, for example, a cylindrical lock.

Further objects of the invention will be brought out in the followingpart of the specification, wherein detailed description is for thepurpose of fully disclosing the invention without placing limitationsthereon.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Referring to the accompanyingdrawings, which are for illustrative purposes only:

FIG. I is a perspective view illustrating the cooperative association ofan electrically actuated locking mechanism mounted on a door frame, anda manually operable locking mechanism mounted on the door, according tothe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view showing details of the solenoidactuated locking bolt, taken substantially on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view showing details of the boltejector, taken substantially on line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrating an alternate arrangement inwhich the bolt ejector is incorporated as an attachment for the doormounted locking mechanism; and

FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing the control circuitry.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION For illustrativepurposes, there is shown in FIG. 1 a door locking arrangement foremergency exit doors in which an electrically operable lockingmechanism, as generally indicated at 10, is mounted on the door frame 11for operative association with a manually operable locking mechanism, asgenerally indicated at 12, mounted on a door 13.

The locking mechanism is contained within a tubular housing 14 which issecured at its open end to a strike plate 15 so as to extend rearwardlytherefrom. Within the housing is a solenoid actuator for a locking bolt16 which is connected in axial alignment with a solenoid plunger 17having operative association with a solenoid coil 18. The locking boltis axially reciprocable with the solenoid plunger and is normallyretained in a retracted position by means of a compression coiled spring19 which surrounds the locking bolt, one end of this spring beingengaged with an annular flange secured to the inner end of the bolt, andthe other end of the spring being engaged with the inner surface of thestrike plate 15. The spring 19 normally urges the locking bolt to aretracted position, when the solenoid coil 18 is deenergized. Uponenergization of the solenoid coil, the plunger will be moved towards theright as seen in FIG, 2 and the locking bolt moved from its unlockedretracted position into a locked position in which it extends through anopening 21 in the strike plate 15 as shown in phantom lines. The strikeplate is secured to the edge face of the door frame by retaining screws22, 22, and at one edge is provided with a laterally projecting curvedcaming flange 23.

As further shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the locking mechanism 12 is shown ascomprising a conventional mortise type lock which has been modified foroperation with the locking bolt 16 of the locking mechanism 10. Thelocking mechanism is housed within a casing 24 which is connected to andextends from a laterally tapered base plate 25 which is secured with itsouter surface flush with the edge surface of the door 13 by means ofretaining screws 25, 25'.

It is to be understood that the components of the locking mechanism mayvary as to their configuration and operative association. For purposesof illustration, the locking mechanism has been shown in this case ascomprising a conventional split hub arrangement in which an inner hub 26and a similar outer hub (not shown) are supported in coaxial rotatablerelation. The hubs are respectively coupled with knob spindles, theinner hub knob spindle being indicated at 27. This spindle and a similarouter knob spindle (not shown) are connectable to appropriate knob orother means for independent manual operation of the lock mechanism fromthe inside or the outside of the door. The inner and outer hub membersrespectively carry semicircular cam members 28 and 29 which have theiropposite ends diametrically disposed on opposite sides of the associatedhub. The cam members 28 and 29 are respectively operatively associatedwith an inside hub lever 30 and outside hub lever 31. Each of theselevers is pivoted for swinging movement on a fixed pivot at itslowermost end. The free end of each hub lever is formed to extend aroundthe associated hub and provide diametrically disposed arms as indicatedat 33 and 34 for abutting engagement by the opposite ends of theassociated hub cam member when rotated in opposite directions. Thus,upon rotation of the hub in either direction, the associated hub leverwill be swung about its pivot in a clockwise direction as seen inFIG. 1. A spring 35 continuously urges each hub lever in acounter-clockwise direction, one end ofthis spring being anchored in thefixed pivot 32 and the opposite end being connected with the hub lever.

The hub levers 30 and 31 are operatively connected with a latch bolt 36which extends through an opening 37 in the face plate 25 and is adaptedto enter an opening 38 in the strike plate 15 when the door is in closedposition. The latch bolt is supported for reciprocative movement bymeans of a shaft 39 which extends be tween spaced guide pins 40 and 41and is provided at its innermost end with a head portion 42. The bolt isnormally urged into an extended latching position by means of acompression spring 43 having one end engaged with the latch bolt 36 andits other end engaged against a collar 44 interposed between the springend and the guide pins 40, 41, this collar being slidably mounted on theshaft 39. The latch bolt is movable to a retracted unlatched position bymanual actuation of either of the hub levers 30, 31, by virtue oftheengagement of the lever arm 34 in each case, behind the head portion 42.As thus arranged, the latch bolt 36 can be moved to unlatched positionby means of the inside or outside knobs.

The conventional mortise lock has been modified according to thefeatures ofthe present invention by providing a bolt ejector 45 which ispositioned above the latch bolt 36 and supported for reciprocativemovement within a tubular support 46 havingan open end in registrationwith an opening 47 in the face plate 25, this opening being sopositioned that it will be axially aligned with the opening 21 of thestrike plate 15, when the door is in closed position, and thereby permitthe reception of the outermost end of the locking bolt 16 when it ismoved to a locking position.

The bolt ejector 45 has its outer end inwardly positioned with respectto the opening 47, and at its other end is connected with one end of ashaft 48 which extends through an opening 49 in the bottom of thetubular support, this shaft at its outer end being provided with a headportion 50. The bolt ejector 45 is normally urged to a retractedposition in which it engages the ad jacent surface of the bottom of thesupport, by means of a compression coiled spring 51 which surrounds theshaft and has one end bearing against the bottom of the support 46 andits other end bearing against the head portion 50.

Provision is made for moving the bolt ejector to an advanced position inwhich the outer end of the bolt will be moved into the opening 47 to aposition in which its end surface will be flush with the outer surfaceof the face plate 25 in response to actuation of the inside hub lever 30by means of the inside knob. With the movement of the bolt ejector toits advanced position as just described, it will function to move thelocking bolt from its locked position in the opening 47 to an unlockedposition which will permit the door to be opened, since the actuation ofthe inside knob also retracts the latching bolt 36 at the same time. Toaccomplish this operation, a rocking lever 52 is pivotally supportedbetween its ends for swinging movement on a fixed pivot 53. The rockinglever hasan upwardly extending arm 54 which extends over and bearsagainst the head portion 50. A downwardly extending arm 55 carries anend pin 56 which is in the path of movement of the inside hub lever 30.The rocking lever 52 is normally urged in a clockwise direction as seenin FIG. 1 by means of a spring 57, one end of this spring being anchoredin the fixed pivot 53, and the other end being secured to the rockinglever. Thus, the pin 56 will be urged at all times into engagement withthe inside hub lever 30. Swinging movement of the hub lever in aclockwise direction will operate to swing the rocking lever 52 in acounter-clockwise direction and move the bolt ejector from its retractedposition to its advanced position for ejecting the locking bolt 16 whenthe door is in locked position.

While the locking bolt and bolt ejector concept of the present inventionhas been described above with respect to a mortise type of lock mountedon the door, the invention is not so limited and may be practiced withrespect to other types of locking mechanisms, such as a cylindricallock, unit lock or with respect to panic bar actuators, wherein the boltejector may be embodied in an attachment for the existing lockstructure. The attachment may be arranged for different types of manualoperating media, for example, knob actuator, lever actuator, panic baractuator, or other suitable forms. As illustrative of the attachmentconcept, there is shown in FIG. 4, a conventional type of cylindricallock which embodies conventional locking components and includesconventional split hub arrangement (not shown) contained within ahousing 58, an outside hub 59 being connected by a spindle 60 with anoutside knob 61 mounted thereon. In a similar manner, an inside hub 62connects with a modified replacement spindle 63 which is longer than thenormally supplied spindle in order to provide for the ejector boltattachment. The outer end ofthe spindle 63 is connected with the insideknob 64.

The hubs 59 and 62 are conventionally connected through components (notshown) for operating a latch bolt 36 which is adapted in the closedposition of the door to enter the opening 38 of the strike plate 15.

The attachment assembly, as generally indicated by the numeral 65comprises a hollow housing 66 having spaced wall members 67 and 68containing axially aligned openings 69 and 70 for receiving the knobspindle 63 therethrough. The housing 66 is secured to the back surfaceof the door 13 by appropriate means such as screws. A bolt ejector 45 ofcylindrical configuration is supported for reciprocative movement withinan open ended bore 71 formed in a support member 72 within the housing.The bolt ejector at its innermost end is in this case connected to anaxially aligned shaft 73 having a terminus head portion 74 which isadapted to bear against a diametrically extending camming face 75 formedat the bottom of a recess 76 provided in the spindle 63. The boltejector 45 is urged to a retracted position by means of a compressioncoiled spring 77 which surrounds the shaft 73, one end of this springbeing in engagement with the head portion 74, and the other end of thespring being in engagement with a washer 78 interposed between thespring end and the adjacent end of the supporting member 72. As thusarranged, the outermost end of the bolt ejector 45 is inwardly spacedfrom theouter open end of the bore 71.

In this embodiment, the locking mechanism 10 is illustrated as beingassociated with a hollow metal door frame which is extruded or otherwiseformed to provide side wings, one of which is indicated by the numeral79, these side wings being arranged for anchoring in conventional knownmanner in a plaster side wall as indicated at 80.

The metal door frame is of generally U-shaped crosssection and is formedwith a bridging portion 81 having an outwardly projecting stop 82against which the edge of the door is adapted to engage in its closedposition. The tubular housing for the locking bolt 16' is positioned inthe stop 82 by being secured as by welding or otherwise to the rearsurface of a supporting plate 83 which extends over an opening 84 in theouter surface of the stop. The supporting plate is formed with anopening 85 to receive the outermost end of the locking bolt 16 duringmovement between locked and unlocked positions. In the closed positionof the door, the locking bolt in its locked position will extend intothe adjacent end of the bore 71 so that its end is juxtaposed to theouter end of the bolt ejector 45.

In the case of emergency exit doors of public buildings, it is extremelyimportant that the locking mechanisms embody fail-safe operatingcharacteristics. From the foregoing description, it will be apparentthat the spring 19 provides in a sense a fail-safe action which willunlock the bolt in the event that energization of the solenoid actuatoris terminated for any reason. However, the crystalization or malfunctionof this spring could produce a most dangerous situation. It is thereforean important feature of the present invention to augment the pseudofail-safe characteristic of the solenoid actuator in a manner topositively open the locked door and move the locking bolt element to itsunlocked position, even though the spring 35 should fail to operate.

In the present case this is accomplished by providing a pair ofpermanent magnets 86 and 87. The magnet 86 is embraced within the outerend of the locking bolt 16 or 16' and will move with the bolt to itslocked and unlocked positions. The other magnet 87 is embraced by thebolt ejector 45 or 45. These magnets are mounted so that when the dooris closed andthe locking bolt is at its locked position, the magnetswill have like poles adjacently positioned in a repulsion mode. Forexample, the adjacent ends may constitute the north poles of themagnets, as shown. Upon spring failure, the magnetic forces generated bythe magnets is of sufficient force to move the locking bolt to unlockedposition without the aid of the spring normally utilized for thispurpose.

. The magnet 87 in the bolt ejector may be utilized for eliminating thespring 77 in the arrangement shown in FIG. 4. For this purpose, thespindle 63 would be constructed of a suitable metal or the cam facecovered with a suitable metal such as steel or other magnetizablematerial, so that the magnet, which would in this case be extended tothe head portion 74, would operate to always maintain the head portionin bearing engagement with the associated camming surface.

In utilizing the locking concept of the present invention, particularlyin the case of emergency exit doors, it is desirable to provideappropriate electrical control indicating components, which will now bedescribed. Open and closed positions of the door are utilized to controla reed switch 88 which is mounted on the rear surface of the supportingplate 83. This switch has normally open contacts which will be operatedto close position, when the door is in closed position, by means of amagnet 89 mounted in an appropriate position on the door structure orlocking mechanism. As illustrated, the magnet 89 is supported in aconfronting portion of the support member 72.

It is also desirable to know whether the locking bolt is in a locked orunlocked position. A reed switch 90 is also mounted on the supportingplate member 83. This switch has normally open contacts which areoperatively controlled by the magnet 86 carried by the locking bolt.When the locking bolt is moved to an unlocked position, the magnet 86will close the switch contacts.

A key switch 91 is provided for controlling the energizing circuit ofthe solenoid coil 18 of the actuator for the locking bolt. This switchis shown as being mounted on the side wing 79 of the door frame foraccess from the outside of the door. The switch has normally closedcontacts which are arranged to be momentarily opened by actuation of thekey. The key is removable only when the contacts are in closed position.

As shown in FIG. 5, the solenoid coil 18 is energized through anenergizing circuit as follows: From one terminal 92a of an electricsource, the contacts of key switch 91, the bolt position switch 88, thesolenoid coil 18 and thence to the other terminal 92b of the electricalsourcev With the door 13 in open position, the contacts of switch 88will be open, and as a consequence the solenoid coil 18 will bedeenergized and the locking bolt 16 will be in its unlocked position. Inthis position the bolt position switch 90 will close its contacts andclose a monitor circuit to indicate by means of a light or othersuitable signal that the locking bolt is in an unlocked position. Uponclosure of the door 13, the magnet 89 will be in a position to actuatethe contacts of switch 88 to closed position, whereupon the solenoidcoil 18 will be energized to move the locking bolt 16' to its lockedposition. This locking bolt actuation will automatically occur when thedoor is closed, and as a result of the locking bolt movement, the magnetwill be in a position which will permit the contacts of switch 90 toopen the monitoring circuit. Should it be desired to open the lockeddoor from the outside thereof this can be accomplished by means of theactuation of the key switch 91 so as to momentarily open its contacts,wherupon the locking bolt 16 will be moved to its unlocked position sothat the door may be unlatched by turning the outermost knob 61 of thelocking mechanism to permit swinging movement of the door. It is notnecessary to deenergize the solenoid 18 in order to close an open door.Closure of the door will manually force the latch 36' and locking bolt16 to retracted positions until the door is closed, whereupon the latch36 and bolt 16 will assume their extended latching and lockingpositions. In the event it is desired to open the door from the inside,this is done simply by turning knob 65 or other actuating device, whichwill retract the latch 36 and simultaneously move the bolt ejector 45 toa position which will move the locking bolt 16 from a locked position toan unlocked position, whereupon the door may be swung to open position.a

From the foregoing description and drawings, it will be clearly evidentthat the delineated objects and features of the invention will beaccomplished.

Various modifications may suggest themselves to those skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit of my invention, and, hence, I do notwish to be restricted to the specific form or forms shown or usesmentioned, except to the extent indicated in the appended claims.

I claim: 1. Fail-safe locking means for a door element supported formovements to opened and closed positions with respect to an associateddoor frame element comprising:

a. first and second bolt means each mounted on one of said elements,each of said bolt means being operable between an extended and retractedposition in relation to the other of said elements; b. manual actuatingmeans on one of said elements for said first and second bolt meansincluding: an accessible outside member operable to move one of saidbolt means to its retracted position. and

an accessible inside member operable to move both of said bolt means toretractable positions; and

c. electrically controlled means operably associated with one of saidbolt means, and upon energization retaining said elements againstrelative movement from a closed to opened position by said outsidemember, but upon deenergization permitting relative opening movement ofsaid elements in response to the actuation of the other of said boltmeans to its retracted position by said outside member.

2. Locking means according to claim I, wherein said one of said boltmeans comprises a locking bolt mounted on the door frame element;

the other of said bolt means comprises a latch bolt mounted on the doorelement, and

said actuating means is mounted on the door element and includes:

a bolt ejector mounted for selective movements to advanced and retractedpositions, said bolt ejector in the closed position of said door elementbeing axially aligned with said locking bolt, and upon movement to saidadvanced position being operative to move said locking bolt to itsretracted position.

3. Locking means according to claim 2, wherein said one of said boltmeans includes a striker plate having an opening through which thelocking bolt is extendable and retractable; the other of said bolt meanscomprises a mortise lock assembly with a face plate having an openingfor receiving the outer end of the locking bolt when the door element isin closed position, and for receiving the outer end of the bolt ejectorwhen moved to its advanced positionasaid face plate having a secondopening through which said latch bolt is extendable and retractable, andsaid striker plate having a second opening for receiving the outer endof the latch bolt in the closed position of the door element.

4. Locking means according to claim 2, wherein said one of said boltmeans includes a striker plate having an opening through which thelocking bolt is extendable and retractable; the other of said bolt meanscomprises an attachment for a door element lock assembly, saidattachment including a housing mountable on the rear surface of the doorelement, said bolt ejector being mounted in the housing for advanced andretractable whereby upon deenergization of said electrically controlledmeans, said urging force returns said locking bolt to its retractedposition.

7. Locking means according to claim 6, wherein the means normally urgingsaid locking bolt towards said retracted position comprises a spring;the electrically controlled means comprises a solenoid connected withsaid locking bolt operable upon energization to move said locking boltfrom said retracted position to said extended position against the forceof said spring; and including a magnet carried by said locking boltcoacting with a magnet carried by said bolt ejector to provide amagnetic force supplementary to said spring for moving said locking boltto its retracted position upon failure of the spring to function.

8. Locking means according to claim 6, wherein the electricallycontrolled means comprises a solenoid hav-' ing a reciprocable plungeraxially aligned with and connected to said locking bolt, and said urgingmeans comprises a spring.

9. Locking means according to claim 6, including an energizing circuitconnecting said electrically controlled means with an electrical source;switch means mounted on said door frame including a reed switch havingnormally open contacts in said circuit; and a magnet carried by the doorelement arranged to be juxtaposed to said switch and operate saidcontacts to circuit closing position in response to movement of saiddoor element to closed position.

10. Locking means according to claim 9, in which a key-controlledswitchmounted on said door frame has i normally closed contacts connected inseries with said reed switch. i

ll. Locking means according to claim 6, including means coactive betweensaid locking bolt and said bolt ejector providing a magnetic forcesupplementary to said urging force for moving said locking bolt to itsretracted position upon failure of said urging means.

12. Locking means according to claim 4, wherein the means providing saidmagnetic force comprises permanent magnets having one set of their likepoles positioned in a repulsion mode.

13. Locking means according to claim 12, wherein one permanent magnet iscarried by said locking bolt, and another permanent magnet is carried bysaid bolt ejector.

l4. Locking means according to claim 13,- wherein the like poles are injuxtaposed relation when the door element is in closed position and thelocking bolt is in extended position.

15. Locking means according to claim 13, in which said actuating meansincludes a cam member engaged with said bolt ejector, and the magnetcarried by said bolt ejector normally urges the bolt ejector againstsaid cam member.

16. Locking means according to claim 13, including a monitor circuit;and switch means having normally open contacts in said circuit which areoperable to circuit closing position by the magnet on said locking boltin response to movement of said locking bolt to retracted position.

17. Locking means according to claim 16, wherein said switch meansincludes a reed switch, and a magnet carried by the locking bolt isarranged to be juxtaposed to said switch in the retracted position ofsaid locking bolt.

1. Fail-safe locking means for a door element supported for movements toopened and closed positions with respect to an associated door frameelement comprising: a. first and second bolt means each mounted on oneof said elements, each of said bolt means being operable between anextended and retracted position in relation to the other of saidelements; b. manual actuating means on one of said elements for saidfirst and second bolt means including: an accessible outside memberoperable to move one of said bolt means to its retracted position, andan accessible inside member operable to move both of said bolt means toretractable positions; and c. electrically controlled means operablyassociated with one of said bolt means, and upon energization retainingsaid elements against relative movement from a closed to opened positionby said outside member, but upon deenergization permitting relativeopening movement of said elements in response to the actuation of theother of said bolt means to its retracted position by said outsidemember.
 2. Locking means according to claim 1, wherein said one of saidbolt means comprises a locking bolt mounted on the door frame element;the other of said bolt means comprises a latch bolt mounted on the doorelement, and said actuating means is mounted on the door element andincludes: a bolt ejector mounted for selective movements to advanced andretracted positions, said bolt ejector in the closed position of saiddoor element being axially aligned with said locking bolt, and uponmovement to said advanced position being operative to move said lockingbolt to its retracted position.
 3. Locking means according to claim 2,wherein said one of said bolt means includes a striker plate having anopening through which the locking bolt is extendable and retractable;the other of said bolt means comprises a mortise lock assembly with aface plate having an opening foR receiving the outer end of the lockingbolt when the door element is in closed position, and for receiving theouter end of the bolt ejector when moved to its advanced position; saidface plate having a second opening through which said latch bolt isextendable and retractable, and said striker plate having a secondopening for receiving the outer end of the latch bolt in the closedposition of the door element.
 4. Locking means according to claim 2,wherein said one of said bolt means includes a striker plate having anopening through which the locking bolt is extendable and retractable;the other of said bolt means comprises an attachment for a door elementlock assembly, said attachment including a housing mountable on the rearsurface of the door element, said bolt ejector being mounted in thehousing for advanced and retractable movement through a housing openingadapted to receive the locking bolt in its extended position and whenthe door element is in closed position.
 5. Locking means according toclaim 4, wherein the lock assembly is a cylindrical lock.
 6. Lockingmeans according to claim 2, including means providing a force normallyurging said locking bolt towards said retracted position; and saidelectrically controlled means upon energization acting to move saidlocking bolt from said retracted position to said extended positionagainst said urging force, whereby upon deenergization of saidelectrically controlled means, said urging force returns said lockingbolt to its retracted position.
 7. Locking means according to claim 6,wherein the means normally urging said locking bolt towards saidretracted position comprises a spring; the electrically controlled meanscomprises a solenoid connected with said locking bolt operable uponenergization to move said locking bolt from said retracted position tosaid extended position against the force of said spring; and including amagnet carried by said locking bolt coacting with a magnet carried bysaid bolt ejector to provide a magnetic force supplementary to saidspring for moving said locking bolt to its retracted position uponfailure of the spring to function.
 8. Locking means according to claim6, wherein the electrically controlled means comprises a solenoid havinga reciprocable plunger axially aligned with and connected to saidlocking bolt, and said urging means comprises a spring.
 9. Locking meansaccording to claim 6, including an energizing circuit connecting saidelectrically controlled means with an electrical source; switch meansmounted on said door frame including a reed switch having normally opencontacts in said circuit; and a magnet carried by the door elementarranged to be juxtaposed to said switch and operate said contacts tocircuit closing position in response to movement of said door element toclosed position.
 10. Locking means according to claim 9, in which akey-controlled switch mounted on said door frame has normally closedcontacts connected in series with said reed switch.
 11. Locking meansaccording to claim 6, including means coactive between said locking boltand said bolt ejector providing a magnetic force supplementary to saidurging force for moving said locking bolt to its retracted position uponfailure of said urging means.
 12. Locking means according to claim 4,wherein the means providing said magnetic force comprises permanentmagnets having one set of their like poles positioned in a repulsionmode.
 13. Locking means according to claim 12, wherein one permanentmagnet is carried by said locking bolt, and another permanent magnet iscarried by said bolt ejector.
 14. Locking means according to claim 13,wherein the like poles are in juxtaposed relation when the door elementis in closed position and the locking bolt is in extended position. 15.Locking means according to claim 13, in which said actuating meansincludes a cam member engaged with said bolt ejector, and the magnetcarried by said bolt ejector normally urges thE bolt ejector againstsaid cam member.
 16. Locking means according to claim 13, including amonitor circuit; and switch means having normally open contacts in saidcircuit which are operable to circuit closing position by the magnet onsaid locking bolt in response to movement of said locking bolt toretracted position.
 17. Locking means according to claim 16, whereinsaid switch means includes a reed switch, and a magnet carried by thelocking bolt is arranged to be juxtaposed to said switch in theretracted position of said locking bolt.